1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to food covers and accompanying receiving units, such as platters or dishes or bowls whose purposes are typically to serve food as well as to keep environmental contaminants off the food concealed beneath the lid, as well as retaining moisture and some degree of warm or cool temperature within.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Although traditional food covers can claim similar advantages of use for their cover designs, such as protecting the underlying food from the environmental elements (U.S. Pub. No.2009/0181335 A1 & 2009/0053663 A1, Int'l Pub. No. CN87205589 U) and some temperature retention (U.S. Pat. No. 4,605,579), all the current covers do not provide a tight enough seal to the environment and are generally of an unappetizing, generic, geometric flattened funnel, cylindrical, rectangular or inverted basket-like shape and design. Additionally, they are either made of some opaque (e.g. metal, wood, ceramic or woven) material so that the user is unable to know what kind of food is underneath the cover until it is lifted or else the cover is made of a transparent material (e.g. clear plastic) which provides little temperature control protection and makes the food look overly sanitized and therefore the presentation of the food is less appetizing or aesthetically appealing. This invention is designed so that the outer shape and look of the cover looks like a delicious version of the food underneath, for example a block of cheese or a display of cocktail shrimp and so on and so on. By presenting and serving the food within this invention's cover and receiving unit, it not only allows the food to look appetizing, but it can also inform the consumer of its contents without the need for additional labeling or lifting of the cover thereby allowing the food to be kept on a table or dining area for a substantial length of time and continue to be preserved at the correct state for consumption. These qualities are lacking in all the current food covers to date.